Something To Be Thankful For
by Ray-Tiger-Cat
Summary: Oneshot It's the holidays and that means joy for all, right? Wrong! Both Max and Kai have problems dealing with the festive atmosphere. Why are they so miserable? And more importantly, will they find something to be thankful for this holiday season?


RTC: Hi all! It seems almost no one responded when I asked if you'd all like to see something for the holidays, so I made this for you all! (I emailed some people and I asked in my last author's note for the oneshot I put up last week.) I figured it'd please you all. It has Kai torture, some angst, and Max torture, especially for Iluvbeyblade! Now go on and read. You know you wanna!

Max: Ray-Tiger-Cat does not own Beyblade!

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Staring out of the balcony, all Max could do was sigh. It was the holidays, complete with cheerful decorations and fresh snow, but he could not feel anything but disappointment. 'Why do I bother hoping for a happy holiday every year, why do I put myself through this?!' he thought to himself. 'I wish I could just be happy like everyone else. It's a time to be thankful, but I can't seem to do that.' He glanced inside the apartment. Inside, he could see all of his team mates relaxing and watching a holiday-themed movie.

Max sighed again. 'It's not like I didn't see this coming... Mom's always been more concerned about her job than her family, even when she and Dad were married. Even when she has me over n New York for the holidays, she still doesn't spend time with me. And now Dad's taken after her and works too much too! I know it's not his fault the hobby shop is so damn popular during the shopping rush, but why can't he spend even one night with me, watching movies and easting popcorn?! He decorates the house like crazy at the start of the holiday rush and then he takes off for the rest of it! It's like he thinks the ornaments can keep me happy, like they used to when I was a kid!'

Meanwhile, inside the apartment, Kai was feeling rather lonely. Sure, his team mates had invited themselves over and were making loads of noise, but he was still feeling out of place. 'It's not like I've never spent the holidays alone before,' he reprimanded himself. 'I was always alone before and it never bothered me until now. Stupid holidays. Stupid holiday videos. Stupid family.'

"Hey Kai! I really need to go, dude or Gramps will kill me!" Tyson's shouting interrupted Kai's rather morbid thoughts. "Ray, Daichi, you guys coming?" he added to the two team mates currently staying with him.

"Me too," Hilary added. "I promised my mom I'd go shopping with her today."

"I'd best be off too," Kenny added.

"But hey, thanks for having us over!" Hilary said with a smile. "Even if it was just because Tyson couldn't resist inviting himself over!"

They all walked over to the door, pulled on their outer clothes and shoes and left. The second they were out, Kai dumped himself on the couch and allowed himself to lie down for a bit. He was tired. Tired of all the cheer that he was supposed to have, tired of trying to be strong, tired of pretending he wasn't lonely when he truly was.

"Kai, are you okay?" Max was the second person to interrupt his thoughts in the past five minutes.

Max had come in from Kai's balcony when he realized the others had already left and found his captain collapsed on his couch, looking pale, frustrated and his hands couldn't seem to stop twitching.

"Yeah, fine Max. Shouldn't you go home too? I mean, shouldn't you have plans with your family too?"

"Nah, not really... Mom's not coming home, and Dad's working, as usual." His bitter tone surprised Kai. He was used to the blonde always being happy-go-lucky. "But you look tired. Get some rest, okay?" Before Kai could say anything, Max had slipped out the door.  
Kai half rose to go lock the door, but then thought better of it. He couldn't be bothered. All he wanted this holiday season was sleep.

Max slumped against the wall once he was out of Kai's apartment. Even his team didn't have time to spend with him. 'It's the holidays, big deal! Doesn't give them all the right to ignore me!' With that, Max ran off down the hall and all the way home. Entering the overly-decorated house, Max felt worse. He found a note on the table.

Max,  
I won't be home until late again tonight. The shop's super busy. Help yourself to those frozen Christmas cookies.  
Dad

It was yet another disappointment. 'He didn't even bother writing 'Love Dad'. Just Dad. He said he might get in before dinner today... Instead, I get frozen, disgusting cookies. Great...' Max thumped up the stairs to his room and flung himself over the bed. Tear pricked his eyes. 'It's one thing not to have a family, but it's another when your family can't make time for you for even one day! Those two are so much alike-workaholics-damn it! Why the hell did they even bother to get divorced?! It's not like they were ever around the other to care!' Launching himself into a very childish tantrum, Max kicked things, flung the pillows and screamed until he was so tired he fell asleep.

"Uh, how long have I been sleeping?" Kai wondered out loud. He groaned when he realized that it was four in the morning. He was sore and cranky from sleeping on the couch, angry at the world for imposing their views on the holidays on him, angry and frustrated with himself for actually caring, and just all around ready to kill someone. "Fuck! All I want is for someone to be around! Damn it all!" Kai was shouting by this point. As much as he didn't want to admit it, all he really wanted was his family. 'Mommy...' The cry of the five year old Kai, weeping for his mother amidst all the big beeping machines and monitors.

Kai snapped his head up. It wouldn't do to go back down on that path. 'I need a walk before practice.'

Absentmindedly, Kai just barely remembered to grab a coat and shoes and lock the door before he took off to the path. Blading always relieved the pressure and hurt.

Beep beep beep! Beep beep beep! Max's alarm would not shut up! He sat up and glared at the inanimate object as though that would help to shut the bloody thing off.

'Oh listen to me! I'm taking my anger and frustration out on the alarm clock, for crying out loud!' He shook his head. 'Well, at least I won't be late for practice... I don't want to know what Kai would do to me if I were.' After the usual morning dash to get dressed and get food, Max tore out the door. Only to be met with about a foot of snow. "Oh for God's sake!" he grumbled as he started ploughing through it. Once he was on the nearest major street, he spotted a familiar figured also headed towards Tyson's dojo. Kai.

'Why do I feel so lousy?' Kai wondered as he made his way down to Tyson's. Light-headedness, a head ache and nausea had been plaguing him all through training.

"Kai!" Max called out, startling the stoic teen.

Kai turned around, about to make a witty remark about not being deaf, but never made it. The world tilted sideways and then went black altogether.

"What the hell?! Kai! Kai, wake up!" Max shouted as he ran to his fallen friend. "Oh, shit, Kai, you're burning up!" Making up his mind, Max tried his best to lift Kai. When he realized his strength was no match for Kai's muscular frame, he simply put Kai's arm around his shoulders and simply half dragged him back to his house.

Dream

"Kai! Oh my God! Kai!" a thin woman screamed. "My baby!" She was holding a tiny figure in her arms. "You're burning up! We need to get you to the hospital! Why'd you go out there, Baby"  
"I wanted to build you a snowman, Mommy," came the faint reply. Then came all the sirens and panic. Kai felt himself being put on a stretcher and wheeled off. "MOMMY"  
Then later, memories of being in a hospital bed, with his mother crying and blaming herself for it. He wanted to tell her it wasn't her fault, but his mouth wouldn't respond.  
And then, just as suddenly, the positions switched. He was the one crying and his mom was in the bed. "Don't leave me, Mommy! Don't go! I love you! MOMMY!" His throat burned, but he kept screaming.

End Dream

"KAI! Kai, wake up!" Kai felt arms shaking his frame. Somehow, he managed to get his eyes open and was met with a pair of blue ones.

"Max?" What had happened?

"Oh good, you're up," the blonde said, sighing deeply. "You had me worried there. You fainted outside." Max answered the unasked question.

Kai looked around to see millions of red and green ornaments, way too many, really, but it definitely wasn't the hospital. "Where am I? It's not white enough to be a hospital," he remarked, before realizing that he had said it out loud.

Max burst into laughter at that. 'It's the first time I've seen him laugh in days,' Kai realized.

"No, don't worry, you're at my house. Are you okay? You seemed to be having a nightmare. Wanna talk about it?"

"No," Kai replied shortly. "You want to tell me why you're so freaking depressed lately?"

Max squirmed. "Not particularly."

"That wasn't a question," Kai muttered.

"It's nothing really. I'm just being overly sensitive. It's just the holidays, that's all," Max answered.

"It's nothing and I'm giving you the holidays off. Spit it out, Tate." Kai had started the conversation to keep Max off his case, but now he was truly intrigued.

"Mom's not coming, I told you that the other day and Dad's too busy. They just don't have any fucking time to spend with me!" Max felt his face burn as the tears rolled down. "They announced their divorce around this time of year, you know. And ever since, things have been stressful."

"Oh..." Silence. Max knew that Kai was usually the quiet one, but it was something else to have him feeling at a lose for words. The great Kai Hiwatari chose not to speak.

"I just wish they'd get their heads on straight and realize that I can't be bought with presents!"

Soon, Max felt Kai's arm on his shoulder, heard his voice telling him to cry it all away. A few minutes later, the sobbing was reduced to hiccups and sniffles. They stay silent for several more minutes before Kai broke into a hacking cough.

"What's wrong with me, Kai? You're sick and all I can think of is myself!" Max ranted to himself as he rushed off to get some medicine. A few hours, some force feeding and a threat or two later, Max was sleeping soundly, while Kai tossed and turned in bed. His moaning eventually woke up his companion. Once he woke Kai up for the second time that day, Max began his inquiry.

"Alright, Kai, 'fess up. Something's wrong with you and I want to know what! You kept screaming for your mother."

Kai visibly stiffened. "I don't want to talk about it, Max."

"Kai, you can tell me, or I can go discuss this with Tyson. I'm just trying to help you."

"It's just a bad memory. Nothing but memories."

"About your mom? Was she evil or something?"

"NO! She was the nicest person I knew! I was the stupid one..."

"Knew? And what do you mean by that?"

"She's dead, Max. Been that way for years."

Max gaped in shock. He had once talked about Kai's father and knew that he left Kai with his grandfather years ago, but never once had he heard about Kai's mother.

"She had cancer. She was sick for so long, too long really. It started controlling her, leaving her too weak too do much of anything. And I certainly didn't do anything to help her out." Kai bowed his head in shame.

"Awe, Kai, you were a kid! What could you have done?"

"What I managed to do was bad. I caused her so much stress! It's no wonder she didn't get better!" His voice was getting more frantic and stressed by the syllable. Max made a face that clearly asked the unspoken question: what did you do? "She was too sick to ever want to come outside and play with me. I mean, she loved doing that before she got sick, so one day I decided to go outside and build her a snowman. I thought it'd be a nice gesture."

"So what went wrong? You went out without bundling up?" Max asked, half joking.

"Yes... how did you know?"

"I can't say you've changed much since then. You were half frozen when you collapsed. So anyway, what happened?"

"I have so learned! But the thing is, we were in Russia, where the temperatures are down right awful. I got so sick. My mom found me half unconscious an hour later and I ended up hospitalized. She was so angry with herself then! I've never seen her that worked up! She sank into a bit of a depression during that time, and soon after, she relapsed. And it was ALL MY FAULT!" Kai got out before breaking into another string of coughs. He reached over and punched a pillow and Max was grateful it wasn't him.

"Kai, it's not your fault. It isn't."

"Just like you think it's your fault your parents leave you alone even when it isn't?" Kai bit back.

Max stiffened. "This shit, it isn't our fault! Just please relax!"

"I want to! I wish I could!"

"But you want your mother, right? Just like I want my parents around. Kai, take it easy. You've always acted like an adult, but you still need support. I want my parents," Max half sobbed as Kai also started tearing up. Max reached over and put his arms around his team mate and friend. For now, they could reach out and comfort each other. "We still have our friends and each other."

Kai returned the hug. "I'm thankful for that."

"Me too, Kai. Me too."

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RTC: So, both Kai and Max have reasons for feeling alone during the holidays! And Kai's past more based on the one from the manga. Anyhow, I hope you all liked it! (I think the ending could have been better, but what do you think?) Okay, well, have a happy holiday, whichever one you celebrate! And happy New Year's too! (Gives you all hugs.) Please review! (Oi, I deserve a present too!) 


End file.
